Wise words from my Uncle...

My Uncle Rick who is a pastor in Merced, CA emailed this to me this afternoon about Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett. It was a great response on what we should do to handle it as Christians, I thought it was well worth sharing.

Response to the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett and Ed McMahon

I. America will again grapple with the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett

a. How do they handle it

i. Sadness, fear, surprise, shock

ii. Incompassionate, critical, satirical

iii. Mad at God, vengeful

b. Why do they handle it that way

i. Different (unbiblical) world view than God-no hope

ii. Don’t know Jesus Christ

iii. Looking for ways to cope with the pain (drugs, alcohol, shrinks)

iv. Unrealistic view of life

1. This is all we have in life-eat, drink and be merry

2. Average life span of “rock star” is 36 years old

3. Death is an equalizer to all-regardless of your $

II. Christians will grapple with the deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett

a. How will you handle it? What will your response be?

i. Incompassionate, got what he deserved, non-evangelistic

ii. Judgmental. Unable to engage with our world.

b. How should you handle it?

i. Seize the opportunity to engage with your friends

ii. Fight the tendency to only criticize how MJ and FF lived, and engage with your friends and show them your hope.

iii. Give them real answers to life (Life is short, death is certain, God is real, what will we do with Christ and His cross).

iv. Provide help and hope for those without hope, not just religious slogans

III. Christians will have answers for the world and have an impact, or their voice will again be sufficiently muted b/c of our inability to engage with people in our culture. The old adage rings true, “People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”

a. If MJ and FF did not receive Christ as their Lord and Savior, they are spending eternity without Christ.

b. MJ and FF’s lifestyle seem to validate that they did not love Christ or live for Him.

c. Ready yourself to answer either scenario.

IV. The world and some Christians are confused on the ultimate issue

a. What are NOT the issues

i. How popular MJ, Ed McMahon, or FF was. Iconic status is useless

ii. How much $ they had

iii. How sad it was that they died

b. What ARE the issues (at least some)

i. God is still holy and loves people and is on His throne

ii. God has been very gracious to give unbelievers (ED M. long life, MJ 50 years, and FF 62 years of life)

iii. God sent Christ to save sinners and provide a tremendous life with Him if we trust Him by faith

iv. All who reject Christ by faith will live forever without Him in hell

v. Death is certain

vi. Life is short

vii. Sin is real

viii. Christ is precious and worthy to be believed in

ix. Share the hope you have with your friends, not just your disagreement with a pagan lifestyle

x. Timeless (eternal, infinite, lasting forever) truths are what to live for, not passing pleasures without Him. What good is it to gain the whole world and lose our soul. FF and MJ will be a faint memory one day.

xi. Things of the earth and its glitz and glamour grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace

xii. The nanosecond we see Christ, will be when we just began our eternal delights of glory with the One we will always love the most forever and love it!!!!!!!!